Method of and apparatus for uncoiling paramagnetic filamentary material



March 27, 1956 RAYBURN 2,739,766

- METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR UNCOILING PARAMAGNETIC FILAMENTARYMATERIAL Filed March 1, 1952 2 Sheets-Sheet l III! Ill! MAG/v57 lNVENTORL A. RA YBURN F/G4 BY Y ATTORNEY V. A. RAYBURN METHOD OF AND APPARATUSFOR UNC'OILING PARAMAGNETIC FILAMENTARY MATERIAL March 27, 1956 2Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 1, 1952 wmw oR- L A. RA YBURN FIG. 3

ATTORNEY United States Patent METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR UNCOILINGPARAMAGNETEC FILAMENTARY MATERIAL Vincent A. Rayburn, Baltimore, Md.,assignor to Western Electric Company, Incorporated, New York, N. Y., acorporation of New York Application March 1, 1952, Serial No. 274,407

12 Claims. (Cl. 242-128) This invention relates to methods of andapparatus for uncoiling paramagnetic filamentary material, and moreparticularly to methods of and apparatus for uncoiling coils of steelwire.

In the manufacture of steel wire on wire drawing machines, the drawnwire is wound upon rotating draw blocks and is accumulated in coil formon spiders or stripper drums located at the top of the draw blocks andfured thereto for rotation therewith. The working face of a draw blockis slightly conical and is flared at the bottom so that the oncomingwire, entering at the bottom, continuously forces previously woundconvolutions of the wire off the upper part of the draw block and ontothe spider or stripper drum.

The spider or stripper drum is slightly smaller in diameter than thedraw block to which it is attached, so that the convolutions of wire,which are forced off the upper end of the draw block, are freed from thepositive drive of the draw block. As a consequence, these releasedconvolutions of wire commence to lag in rotary speed due to theirinertia so that the diameters of the convolutions become somewhatincreased. Subsequent convolutions which are forced off of the drawblock find their way to the inside and bottom of the previously releasedconvolutions.

This action continues successively until the compacting and restrainingforces, created by the off-going convolutions crowding to the inside ofthe coil forming on the spider or stripper drum, balance or arrest theuncoiling forces caused by the inertia of the whole. When this occurs,what is sometimes referred to in the trade as a hank is fully formed andthe next convolution of wire to leave the draw block, finding no freespace within this portion of the coil, springs out and commences theformation of a new hank, though still a part of the entire coil.

The creation of the hanks and their size is a natural consequence of thephysical proportions of the wire and the dimensional relationshipsbetween the wire diameter, draw block diameter, taper and height, andthe speed of the coiling operation. These hanks, which are naturalsegments of the full coil, forming under no precisely controlledconditions, contain random lengths of wire varying as much as 25% eitherway of a mean. As the coiling operation progresses, the convolutionslast to leave the draw block continuously seek positions to the insideand bottom of the coil forming on the spider or stripper drum. Theindividual hanks making up the complete coil are readily identified andmay be separated by a skilled handl r without tangling or fouling.

When uncoiling the wire from a series of such hanks, the mostsatisfactory procedure is to reverse the coiling process, that is, thewire is taken off from the inside and bottom of the last hank to beformed. In the usual uncciling apparatus, the wire is placed on arotatable arbor, or swift, from which the wire is pulled. However, dueto the drag from the arbor brake, a portion of the convolutions of wireare drawn tightly against the arbor while others remain loose. Thelooser convolutions tend to become entangled with the tighterconvolutions of the hank and frequently the result is serious damage anddelays caused by kinking, fouling, breaking and other strand disorders.Various devices have been proposed to reduce the aforementioned hazardsof the uncoiling operations, but the results thereof have not beenentirely satisfactory.

It is an object of this invention to provide new and improved methods ofand apparatus for uncoiling paramagnetic filamentary material.

Another object is to provide new and improved methods of and apparatusfor uncoiling coils of steel Wire.

Other objects and features of this invention will become apparent as thespecification proceeds.

An apparatus embodying certain features of the invention may include aretainer of nonmagnetic material for supporting a coil of the material.Magnetic means are provided for producing a magnetic flux Within thematerial whereby the individual convolutions of the coil are compactedtightly together and against the sides of the retainer by the resultingmagnetic coercive forces, which restrain the convolutions of the coiland prevents fouling of the material as it is pulled from the coil.

It is believed that the invention will be clearly understood from thefollowing detailed description, when read in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation, partially in section, of apreferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken along line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary section of a portion of the apparatusshown in Fig. 1, and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken along line 4-4 of Fig.1.

Referring now to Fig. l, a continuous coiled length of steel wire 10, inthe form of stacked hanks l.212, is positioned within a tapered openbasket 14-. The slight taper in the basket 14 allows the individualhanks to settle downwardly during an uncoiling operation as thelower-most of the hanks 12-12 is removed. The basket 14 includes a cup15 formed from nonmagnetic material, such as copper, brass or the like.The bottom of the cup 15 is generally convex, but the center there-v oftapers into a bell-mouthed portion extending into a frustoconical wireguide 16, made of wear-resistant, hardened steel, which is attached tothe cup 15. Secured to the cup 15 and spaced evenly about the peripherythereof are a multiplicity of slats 1717 made of nonmagnetic material.These slats 17 l7 are curved at their upper ends where they blend into aloading platform 19 to which they are fixedly attached.

Four columnar members 2(i2il are secured to and support a flanged ring22, which in turn serves as a support for the platform 19. The columnarmembers 2i-2) support also an electromagnet assembly designatedgenerally as 23. The assembly 23 includes an upper annular pole piece 24and a lower annular pole piece 25. The pole pieces 24 and 25 are made ofa paramagnetic material of very high permeability, such as dynamo ironor the like, and are fastened together by bolts 2727 spaced thereabout.The pole pieces 24 and 25 have annular grooves 28 and 29 formed thereinto receive and surround a multi-turn field coil 30. A ring 31 ofnonmagnetic material serves to retain the coil 30 in place between thepole pieces 24 and 25, and prevents movement thereby as a result offorces created when the coil 30 is subsequently energized.

The projecting faces of the pole pieces 24 and 25 are contoured in sucha manner that the nonmagnetic cup 15 is received snugly therein and issupported firmly thereby. The dimensions and shape of the pole pieces 24are such that when the field coil 30 is energized a magnetic field iscreated. Due to the particular configuration of the cup 15 and theposition of the field coil assembly 23, the lower-most of the hanks 1212is included in this magnetic field.

The bell-mouthed guide 16 is designed to conduct the free end of thewire to a twist-localizing device which consists of a strand tensioner32 and a spinner assembly shown generally at 33. The strand tensioner 32(Fig. 3) includes a frame 34, which is generally rectangular in shapeand supports several pairs of opposed slidable rods 35-35. The rods 3535are slidably mounted within adjustable threaded bushings 36-66 which arereceived within threaded apertures in the vertical sides of the frame34. The opposing ends of the rods 3535 are provided with holders 37-37which support grooved friction elements 38-38 mounted thereon. Thefriction elements 38-38 are made of tungsten carbide or the like, andare urged by the resilient force of bias springs 39-39 mounted on therods 35-35, respectively, between the bushings 36-36 and the holders37-37, into engagement with the advancing wire 19, thereby imposing atensioning drag upon the wire as it is advanced therebetween.

The spinner assembly 33 includes a D-shaped mounting plate 42 whichsupports a stub shaft 44 (Fig. 4). A

bevel gear 47 is rotatably mounted upon the stub shaft 44 and supports asheave 49 mounted fixedly thereupon for rotation therewith. A shroudingstrip 51 of sheet metal is attached to the periphery of the mountingplate 42 and serves both as a guard for the sheave 49 and as a supportfor the ends of a vertically positioned shaft 53. The shaft 53 isprovided with a concentrically mounted bevel gear 55, which is keyedthereto and meshes with the bevel gear 47 in such a manner that anyrotary movement of the sheave 49 is transmitted to the shaft 53. Thelower end of the shaft 53 extends a short distance beyond its lowerbearing on the shrouding strip 51 and has attached thereto, at itsextremity, a spur gear 58. The gear 58 meshes with a stationary spurgear 59 which is fixedly secured to a retainer 60 supported byhorizontal cross members 6262 attached to the columnar members 2il2fi.

The spinner assembly 33 is further provided with sleeve bearings 65 and66 which are received, respectively, within the retainer 60 and asimilarly mounted retainer 68 supported by horizontal cross members6969. The bearings 65 and 66 permit the rotation of the assembly 33about a vertical axis tangent to the winding periphery of the sheave 49.The rotation of the assembly occurs when the sheave 49 and the attachedbevel gear 47 are rotated, thereby transmitting their movement via thebevel gear 55 to the shaft 53 and the attached spur gear 58, which is,in turn, driven about the periphery of the stationary gear 59 carryingwith it the freely rotatable assembly 33.

A tubular guide 71, secured fixedly to the assembly 33 for rotationtherewith, is mounted coaxially within the bearing 66, a small lengththereof projecting above the recessed upper face of the retainer 68. Thestrand tensioner 32 is mounted upon this projecting portion of thetubular guide 71 and is keyed thereto for rotation therewith. Thevertical axis of the tubular guide 71, the contact line of opposingfriction elements 38-38 and the vertical axis of the guide 16 fall alonga common vertical line, as shown in Fig. 3, the line being substantiallytangent to the winding periphery of the sheave 49 and lying in the planethereof.

A second tubular guide 73, secured fixedly to the assembly 33 andpositioned coaxially within the bearing 65, projects beyond the lowerface of the retainer 60 and serves as a strand guide for a guide sheave75 mounted on the lower side of one of the cross members 62-62.

The sheave 75 is designed to introduce a change of direction in the pathof an advancing strand and to direct it toward a conventional takeupcapstan designated generally at 7 7.

Operation The coil of continuous steel wire 10, in the form of a seriesof hanks 12-12, is stacked within the basket 14 with the lower-most hankfitting snugly within the cup 15. The field coil 30 is then energized tocreate a magnetic field, and the resulting magnetic coercive forcescause the convolutions of the lower-most hank 12 to be pulled outwardlyagainst the wall of the cup 15 where they are'held rigidly as if thehank were a solid mass. The free innerend from the lower-most of thehanks 12-12 is peeled manually therefrom and threaded between thefriction elements 38-38 of the strand tensioner 32. The end is thenpassed through the tubular guide 71, where it is passed completelyaround the sheave 49, into the tubular guide 73 to the guide sheave 75and thence to the takeup capstan 77.

The drive means (not shown) for the takeup capstan 77 is then energizedto advance the wire 10. The tension in the wire 10 causes the free endthereof to peel away from the other convolutions of the lower-most ofthe hanks 12--12 against the magnetic coercive forces caused by themagnetic flux within the hank. The magnetic coercive forces tend toprevent the convolutions of the hank 12 from uncoiling at a greater ratethan the wire 10 is taken up by the takeup capstan 77.

The crowned configuration of the intermediate portion of the bottom ofthe cup 15 imposes a frictional drag on the advancing wire 10 in such amanner as to cause it to assumea curved path similar to that shown inFig. 2 as it peels away from the adjacent convolutions of the lower-mosthank 12. The smooth and uniform curvature of this path prevents sharpbends which might cause destructive kinking in wire made of relativelysoft steel.

As the wire 10 advances around the sheave 49, the sheave 49 is driven bythe wire because the tensioner 32 tends to hold back the wire and tokeep it in contact with the sheave. When the sheave 49 rotates, theentire spinner assembly 33 is rotated about its vertical axis ofrevolution, since the sheave 49 is geared to the spur gear 58 which isdriven about the periphery of the stationary gear 59. The ratios of thevarious gears are selected so that the spinner assembly 33 makes onecomplete turn during the passage of one-mean convolution of the wire 10over the sheave 49.

Since; not all of the convolutions of the wire in a particular-hank 12are exactly the same length, rotation of the spinner assemblyisrelatively slower when the convolutions are taken from the inside ofthe hank and somewhat faster when it is coming from the outside thereof.

The variations in length, however, have been found by experiment to beonly about 3% and tend to equalize each other in every hank.z The amountof twist that may accumulate in the wire 10 above the spinner assembly33 due to these random variations in the length of convolutions has beenfound to be very small and it is not troublesome.

It is manifest that the hereinabove described apparatus is merelyillustrative, and that various applications and modifications may bemade within the scope of the invention.

1 What is claimed is:

1. Apparatus for uncoiling coils of paramagnetic filamentary material,which comprises a retainer of nonmagnetic composition for supporting acoil of such material, and magnetic means for producing a magnetic fluxwithin the material whereby the individual convolutions of the coil arecompacted tightly together and against the sides of the retainer by theresulting magnetic coercive forces, whichv tend to restrain uncoiling ofthe convolutions of the coil and to prevent fouling of the material asit is pulled from the coil.

2. Apparatus for uncoiling coils of paramagnetic filamentary material,which comprises a cup of nonmagnetic composition for containing andsupporting a coil of paramagnetic filamentary material, said cup havinga centrally located aperture in the bottom thereof, strand withdrawingmeans for uncoiling and withdrawing the free inner end of thefilamentary material from the coil through the aperture in the cupbottom, and means for producing a relatively strong magnetic flux withinthe material whereby the individual convolutions of the coil arecompacted tightly together and against the sides of the cup, saidmagnetic forces tending to resist the uncoiling force applied to thematerial by the withdrawing means, thereby preventing fouling of thematerial as it is withdrawn.

3. Apparatus for uncoiling coils of paramagnetic wire, which comprises ahollow receptacle of nonmagnetic composition designed to contain andsupport stacked hanks of a coil of wire, the bottom of said receptaclebeing closed except for an aperture through which the free inner end ofthe wire may be passed, and magnetic means for producing a magnetic fiuxwithin the wire adjacent to the bottom of the receptacle whereby theindividual convolutions of a hank are held tightly together and againstthe sides of the receptacle by the resulting magnetic coercive forces,thereby restraining the convolutions from fouling the free inner end ofthe material as it is pulled from the coil.

4. Apparatus for uncoiling bundles of coiled steel wire, which comprisesa cylindrical holder of nonmagnetic composition for containing andsupporting a bundle of hanks of steel wire, the bottom of said holderbeing closed and generally convex on its inner surface except for thecentral portion thereof which tapers into a centrally located aperturethrough which the free inner end of the bottommost hank may be passed,magnetic means for producing a relatively high magnetic flux within thewire adjacent to the bottom of the holder whereby the individualconvolutions of a hank are held tightly together by the resultingmagnetic coercive forces, said forces resisting any forces tending touncoil the hank, and means for withdrawing the free inner end of thebottom-most hank to uncoil the wire.

5. Apparatus for uncoiling bundles of coiled wire made of paramagneticmaterial, which comprises a cylindrical receptacle of nonmagneticcomposition designed to contain and support a bundle of hank-wound wire,the bottom of said receptacle being closed except for a centrallylocated aperture through which the free inner end of the wire may bepassed, and an electromagnetic coil surrounding closely the periphery ofthe receptacle, said coil when energized being capable of producing amagnetic flux within the wire adjacent to the bottom of the receptaclewhereby the individual convolutions of a hank are compacted tightlytogether and against the sides of the receptacle by the resultingmagnetic coercive forces, said forces preventing fouling during anuncoiling operation in which the free inner end is peeled from thebottom-most hank against said magnetic coercive forces.

6. Apparatus for uncoiling bundles of coiled steel wire, which comprisesa hollow nonmagnetic receptacle for containing and supporting avertically stacked bundle of hank-wound steel wire, the bottom of saidreceptacle being generally convex on its inner surface except for thecentral portion thereof which tapers into a centrally locatedbell-mouthed orifice through which the free inner end of the wire may bepassed, a strand withdrawing means located below the cup for advancingthe free inner end of the wire through the orifice, an electromagneticcoil, an annular upper pole piece, an annular lower pole piece, therespective pole pieces being secured together on opposite sides of thecoil and are so positioned as to engage and support the outer peripheryof the receptacle, and means for energizing the electromagnetic coilwhereby a strong magnetic flux is created within the steel wire adjacentto the bottom of the receptacle, the resulting magnetic coercive forcescausing the individual convolutions of a hank to be magnetically frozentogether against the walls of the receptacle, the magnetic coerciveforces tending to resist somewhat the force applied by the strandwithdrawing means, thereby preventing fouling of the material.

7. A device for localizing the accumulation of twists in filamentarymaterial being uncoiled from a coil of material positioned in amaterial-dispensing apparatus and advanced by a strand withdrawingmeans, which comprises a rotatable support positioned intermediate ofthe dispensing apparatus and the strand withdrawing means and having itsaxis of rotation substantially paraliel to the advancing material, asheave rotatably mounted on the support and designed to be engaged by aloop of the advancing material for rotation thereby, a gear trainoperatively connected to the sheave and designed to be driven thereby tocause the support to rotate on its axis of rotation, the train value ofthe gear train being such that the support rotates through 360 duringthe passage of a length of material equal to the length of one meanconvolution of the coil, thereby transferring the accumulation of twistsin the advancing material from the region between the coil and therotatable support to the region between the support and the withdrawingmeans.

8. A device for localizing the accumulation of twists in filamentarymaterial being uncoiled from a coil positioned in a material-dispensingapparatus and advanced by a strand withdrawing means, which comprises arotatable support positioned intermediate of the dispensing apparatusand the strand withdrawing means and having its axis of rotationsubstantially parallel to the advancing material, a sheave rotatablymounted on the support and designed to be engaged by a loop of theadvancing material for rotation thereby, a bevel gear fixedly secured tothe sheave for rotation therewith, a fixedly mounted stationary gear,and a spur gear intermeshing with said stationary gear and driven by thebevel gear in such a manner as to cause the spur gear to rotate onceabout the stationary gear during the passage of a length of materialequal to the length of one mean convolution of the coil, carrying withit the rotatable support and attached sheave, thereby transferring theaccumulation of twists in the advancing material from the region betweenthe materialdispensing apparatus and the rotatable support to the regionbetween the support and the withdrawing means.

9. Apparatus for uncoiling bundles of coiled paramagnetic wire, whichcomprises a nonmagnetic receptacle for containing and supporting avertically stacked bundle of hank-wound wire, said receptacle having acentrally located aperture in the bottom thereof, strand withdrawingmeans for uncoiling and withdrawing the free inner end of the wire fromthe bottom-most hank thereof through the aperture in the bottom of thereceptacle, magnetic means for producing a strong magnetic flux withinthe wire adjacent to the bottom of the receptacle whereby the individualconvolutions of a hank are compacted tightly together and against thesides of the receptacle, said magnetic forces tending to resist theuncoiling force applied to the wire by the withdrawing means, arotatable support positioned intermediate of the receptacle and thewithdrawing means and having its axis of rotation substantially parallelto the advancing wire, a sheave rotatably mounted on the support andengaged by a loop of the advancing wire for rotation thereby, and a geartrain operatively connected to the sheave and designed to be driventhereby to cause the support to rotate on its axis of rotation, thetrain value of the gear train being such that the support rotatesthrough 360 during the passage of a length of wire equal to the lengthof one mean convolution of a hank, thereby transferring the accumulationof twists in the advancing wire from the region between the hank and therotatable support to the regiontbetween the support and the withdrawingmeans.

10. The method of uncoiling wire made of paramagnetic material, whichcomprises the steps of supporting a coil of said wire within anonmagnetic retainer, passing through said coil a magnetic flux ofsutficient strength to cause the convolutions of the coil to becompacted tightly together and against the sides of the retainer by theresulting magnetic coercive forces, and peeling a free end from thecoil, the magnetic coercive forces tending to restrain uncoiling of theconvolutions and to prevent the fouling thereof as the wire is pulledfrom the coil.

11. The method of uncoiling coiled hanks of steel wire, which comprisesthe steps of supporting such a hank within a nonmagnetic retainer,passing a magnetic flux through the convolutions of the hank, andpeeling the free inner end from the hank, said magnetic flux being ofsuificient strength to cause said convolutions to be compacted tightlytogether and against the sides of the retainer, thereby tending torestrain uncoiling of the convolutions producing a magnetic flux withinthe material whereby.

the individual convolutions of the coil are compacted tightly togetherand against the sides of the retainer by the resulting magnetic coerciveforces, said forces tending to restrain the uncoiling of theeonvolutions of the coil and to prevent the fouling of the material asit is pulled from the coil.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,848,982 Webb Mar. 8, 1932 1,955,785 Arkema et a1. Apr. 24, 19342,421,336 Kline et a1. May 21, 1947 r 2,605,982 Miller Aug. 5, 1952

12. APPARATUS FOR UNCOILING COILS OF PARAMAGNETIC FILAMENTARY MATERIAL,WHICH COMPRISES A RETAINER FOR SUPPORTING A COIL OF SUCH MATERIAL, ANDMAGNETIC MEANS FOR PRODUCING A MAGNETIC FLUX WITHIN THE MATERIAL WHEREBYTHE INDIVIDUAL CONVOLUTIONS OF THE COIL ARE COMPACTED TIGHTLY TOGETHERAND AGAINST THE SIDES OF THE RETAINER BY THE RESULTING MAGNETIC COERCIVEFORCES, SAID FORCES TENDING TO RESTRAIN THE UNCOILING OF THECONVOLUTIONS OF THE COIL TERSECTING SAID BORE, WEDGES SLIDABLE IN SAIDSLOTS ADAPTED TO ENGAGE SAID SEGMENTS ON THE INTERIOR THEREOF, AND EX-